Year One:
Blackest Night - Jimmy
LexCom - Gina
Another Teen Titans Death - Jimmy
New Robin - Clark
Kryptonians - Lois
Libra - Perry
Intergang - Cat
S.T.A.R. Labs - Gina
Removal of Superboy Memorial - Ron
Metropolis Meteors Win - Steve
Bruce Wayne? - Lois
Mon-El - Ron
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The "feel" of the series would be like The Wire season 5 meets Gotham Central, but without being as bleak as either of them. As far as style, I would shoot for something very similar to 52, where some stories were featured heavily in one issue, then barely touched on or not touched on at all in the next. Everything from that two-page spread in the script would be touched on at some point. I used what I thought to be some of more basic and immediate ideas and made those my "Year One" stories. Some stories would blossom into others either late into year one or into year two, others would intersect similar again to 52, and some would run the course of the series...which in my mind is the end of year three. If the imaginary market for this imaginary book supported it enough, I could easily take it longer.
Year One would involve getting Lois and Clark out of Metropolis. Obviously Clark can get back whenever he wants. I wanted Lois out to keep her from being a leech on the other stories. I gave her the Kryptonians story as a way to possibly inform her even more so of who her husband is and where he comes from. A good amount of the rest of the year would keep everyone else in Metropolis and have those people interacting with each other as well as with background characters that might be developed more as time goes on.
Of course there's a few hurdles with writing a book like this. With it being a story about a NEWSpaper, current events would need to be touched on to keep the book relevant. I wrote the pitch and script in November 2009 and some of those ideas aren't really applicable anymore (hell, the Kryptonian thing is almost out the window by this point). Knowing what's coming would help so that those things can be worked in at the appropriate time and approached from the right angle.
Well, I guess that's it for now. I may revisit this if any further ideas come. I would buy this book if it existed and I would absolutely love to write it.
Monday, March 22, 2010
The Daily Planet - Part 1: Pitch and Script
The Daily Planet
Where We Are:
During Final Crisis, The Daily Planet building was the victim of an attack. There were deaths and injuries. With the building rebuilt, the collective staff is nervous but eager to get back to work. There is a core staff that will get most of the spotlight:
Perry White: Editor In Chief. He cares greatly about his staff. Married. Has beat cancer. He uses an old-fashioned typewriter.
Clark Kent: Reporter. Seemingly lazy work ethic. Also works on a typewriter.
Lois Lane: Reporter. Married to Kent. Busy-body. Not afraid to chase a story.
Jimmy Olson: Photographer. Superman’s best friend. Will go where needed.
Cat Grant: Gossip and Fashion Columnist. Thinks her looks can get her places.
Ron Troupe: Political Editorialist. Highly Educated.
Steve Lombard: Sports Reporter. In love with himself and lets everyone know it. Good at his job.
Gina Dresner: A new character. She runs the Daily Planet website and is the new head of IT. She’s an “alt” girl with many tattoos and piercings. Smokes like a chimney.
Where We’re Going:
Arc one/Year one involves setting up what’s basically an ensemble cast in the backdrop of Metropolis. The staff will travel as necessary to follow a lead or get the best possible story. The main staff listed above will carry most of the focus with others weaving in and out.
Perry is stressed out after the attack during Final Crisis. He starts smoking again and hides it from his wife and co-workers. The only person who knows is Gina, who he forms a father/daughter relationship with. Their relationship can also let us explore print media vs. web-based media and how they can co-exist.
Clark seems distant but will step up when needed. Someone needs to keep an eye on the city.
Lois is restless and seems to be juggling many stories, some of which may end up getting her into trouble.
Jimmy’s looking for that one story or photo to really put him at the top. He may have another calling, though.
Cat has a new relationship with someone out of the office and tries to get him hired.
Ron becomes a foundation of the newsroom. He’s someone a lot of the staff looks up to and seeks advice from.
Steve is about to get a big break in his career but he may have to ask for help when it becomes more than he can handle.
Gina is the new girl but already settling in. She feels more comfortable in front of a computer than talking to someone face-to-face?
Most of our core staff has lost someone important to them, most recently was Clark’s father Jonathan, and they’ll have to come together when a colleague dies during the course of the series.
So what kind of stories will the staff be looking into while juggling all of this? Please see the attached script.
The Daily Planet Script for pages 1-3:
Page 1:
*Exterior shot of the top half of the Daily Planet building. The sun is shining off of the familiar globe. It looks to be just past midday in Metropolis. We can see the rest of the skyline in this shot, including the LexCorp building.
Caption 1 – “Everyone knows Metropolis is Superman’s city.”
Caption 2 – “But this story isn’t about him.”
*Interior shot. We see an overhead view of Perry White at his desk. His typewriter is there, papers, whatever you’d think to find on the boss’ desk. Filing cabinets are lined up against the walls on either side. He’s reaching into his desk for his pipe.
Caption 1 – “This is about his boss.”
*Interior shot in a different part of the building. This is obviously part of the newsroom. Lois Lane is on the phone at her desk but her posture is a little weird. She’s grabbing her coat while rising up halfway out of her chair.
Lois – “I’ll be right there. Don’t go anywhere.”
Caption 1 – “His lover.”
*We see Jimmy Olsen entering the newsroom. He looks pretty satisfied with himself. He has his camera on him, of course. Lois (off-panel) grabs Jimmy by the upper arm. From what we can see of Lois’ arm, she has her coat on now.
Lois (off-panel) – “No time to get comfy, Jimmy. We’re heading back out there.”
Caption 1 – “His best friend.”
Pages 2-3
*BIG panel, taking up all of page 2 and two-thirds of page three. The last third of page 3 is just a black border with enough room for another panel on the bottom-right (see below). In this big panel, we see the scope of the newsroom. There are at least 100 staffers here, in various states of work. On the phone, running with huge piles of paper, writing things down, etc. It’s chaotic, but everyone is working. There’s a few TVs on pillars and/or walls turned on to sports, news (WGBS?) and other channels. Perry’s office is off to the side, and it should be marked “Perry White – Editor In Chief.”
There are many word balloons here, but none of them are attached to any speaker. There should be plenty of room for all of these without covering up much else.
“Hold on sir, let me write this down”
“The dead returning to life”
“LexCorps”
“LexCom”
“Another Teen Titans casualty”
“Batwoman”
“New Robin”
“New Batman?”
“Booster Gold”
“Amanda Waller”
“Suicide Squad”
“Checkmate”
“New Justice League”
“Kryptonians”
“Let me run this by Troupe”
“Give this to Gina, the new girl”
“Suicide Slum”
“Libra?”
“Remaining fallout from Everyman”
“Rose and Thorne”
“Gangbuster”
“Black Lightning”
“Millennium Giants”
“S.T.A.R. Labs”
“Prof. Emil Hamilton”
“Ruin”
“Removal of Superboy Memorial?”
“Attack on the Planet”
“Anti-Life Equation?”
“Bleed?”
“Dr. John Henry Irons”
“Unrest in Khandaq”
“Metropolis Meteors 5-3 win over Cardinals”
“Metropolis Generals’ Point Guard subject of controversy”
“Anyone seen Planet owner Bruce Wayne?”
“WGBS expanding?”
“Guardian”
“Mon-El”
“Sam Lane’s intentions?”
There’s a caption in the upper-left.
Caption 1 – “His Planet.”
*Close-up view of Perry White’s closed office door. Like the previous panel, it says “Perry White – Editor In Chief” on it. We can see his silhouette behind the tinted window. There’s a big screaming word balloon, going up and out of the panel, into the black border above it.
Perry – “LANE! KENT! GET IN HERE!”
Where We Are:
During Final Crisis, The Daily Planet building was the victim of an attack. There were deaths and injuries. With the building rebuilt, the collective staff is nervous but eager to get back to work. There is a core staff that will get most of the spotlight:
Perry White: Editor In Chief. He cares greatly about his staff. Married. Has beat cancer. He uses an old-fashioned typewriter.
Clark Kent: Reporter. Seemingly lazy work ethic. Also works on a typewriter.
Lois Lane: Reporter. Married to Kent. Busy-body. Not afraid to chase a story.
Jimmy Olson: Photographer. Superman’s best friend. Will go where needed.
Cat Grant: Gossip and Fashion Columnist. Thinks her looks can get her places.
Ron Troupe: Political Editorialist. Highly Educated.
Steve Lombard: Sports Reporter. In love with himself and lets everyone know it. Good at his job.
Gina Dresner: A new character. She runs the Daily Planet website and is the new head of IT. She’s an “alt” girl with many tattoos and piercings. Smokes like a chimney.
Where We’re Going:
Arc one/Year one involves setting up what’s basically an ensemble cast in the backdrop of Metropolis. The staff will travel as necessary to follow a lead or get the best possible story. The main staff listed above will carry most of the focus with others weaving in and out.
Perry is stressed out after the attack during Final Crisis. He starts smoking again and hides it from his wife and co-workers. The only person who knows is Gina, who he forms a father/daughter relationship with. Their relationship can also let us explore print media vs. web-based media and how they can co-exist.
Clark seems distant but will step up when needed. Someone needs to keep an eye on the city.
Lois is restless and seems to be juggling many stories, some of which may end up getting her into trouble.
Jimmy’s looking for that one story or photo to really put him at the top. He may have another calling, though.
Cat has a new relationship with someone out of the office and tries to get him hired.
Ron becomes a foundation of the newsroom. He’s someone a lot of the staff looks up to and seeks advice from.
Steve is about to get a big break in his career but he may have to ask for help when it becomes more than he can handle.
Gina is the new girl but already settling in. She feels more comfortable in front of a computer than talking to someone face-to-face?
Most of our core staff has lost someone important to them, most recently was Clark’s father Jonathan, and they’ll have to come together when a colleague dies during the course of the series.
So what kind of stories will the staff be looking into while juggling all of this? Please see the attached script.
The Daily Planet Script for pages 1-3:
Page 1:
*Exterior shot of the top half of the Daily Planet building. The sun is shining off of the familiar globe. It looks to be just past midday in Metropolis. We can see the rest of the skyline in this shot, including the LexCorp building.
Caption 1 – “Everyone knows Metropolis is Superman’s city.”
Caption 2 – “But this story isn’t about him.”
*Interior shot. We see an overhead view of Perry White at his desk. His typewriter is there, papers, whatever you’d think to find on the boss’ desk. Filing cabinets are lined up against the walls on either side. He’s reaching into his desk for his pipe.
Caption 1 – “This is about his boss.”
*Interior shot in a different part of the building. This is obviously part of the newsroom. Lois Lane is on the phone at her desk but her posture is a little weird. She’s grabbing her coat while rising up halfway out of her chair.
Lois – “I’ll be right there. Don’t go anywhere.”
Caption 1 – “His lover.”
*We see Jimmy Olsen entering the newsroom. He looks pretty satisfied with himself. He has his camera on him, of course. Lois (off-panel) grabs Jimmy by the upper arm. From what we can see of Lois’ arm, she has her coat on now.
Lois (off-panel) – “No time to get comfy, Jimmy. We’re heading back out there.”
Caption 1 – “His best friend.”
Pages 2-3
*BIG panel, taking up all of page 2 and two-thirds of page three. The last third of page 3 is just a black border with enough room for another panel on the bottom-right (see below). In this big panel, we see the scope of the newsroom. There are at least 100 staffers here, in various states of work. On the phone, running with huge piles of paper, writing things down, etc. It’s chaotic, but everyone is working. There’s a few TVs on pillars and/or walls turned on to sports, news (WGBS?) and other channels. Perry’s office is off to the side, and it should be marked “Perry White – Editor In Chief.”
There are many word balloons here, but none of them are attached to any speaker. There should be plenty of room for all of these without covering up much else.
“Hold on sir, let me write this down”
“The dead returning to life”
“LexCorps”
“LexCom”
“Another Teen Titans casualty”
“Batwoman”
“New Robin”
“New Batman?”
“Booster Gold”
“Amanda Waller”
“Suicide Squad”
“Checkmate”
“New Justice League”
“Kryptonians”
“Let me run this by Troupe”
“Give this to Gina, the new girl”
“Suicide Slum”
“Libra?”
“Remaining fallout from Everyman”
“Rose and Thorne”
“Gangbuster”
“Black Lightning”
“Millennium Giants”
“S.T.A.R. Labs”
“Prof. Emil Hamilton”
“Ruin”
“Removal of Superboy Memorial?”
“Attack on the Planet”
“Anti-Life Equation?”
“Bleed?”
“Dr. John Henry Irons”
“Unrest in Khandaq”
“Metropolis Meteors 5-3 win over Cardinals”
“Metropolis Generals’ Point Guard subject of controversy”
“Anyone seen Planet owner Bruce Wayne?”
“WGBS expanding?”
“Guardian”
“Mon-El”
“Sam Lane’s intentions?”
There’s a caption in the upper-left.
Caption 1 – “His Planet.”
*Close-up view of Perry White’s closed office door. Like the previous panel, it says “Perry White – Editor In Chief” on it. We can see his silhouette behind the tinted window. There’s a big screaming word balloon, going up and out of the panel, into the black border above it.
Perry – “LANE! KENT! GET IN HERE!”
Unorganized.
You know...when I write in different "sessions" about a single topic I REALLY need to keep all the things regarding that topic/project/whatever in a single fucking book. This is getting ridiculous.
Monday, March 15, 2010
How about some Emo instead?
This is something I wrote on 4/17/2008...
I'm back where I started, but more damaged inside
A victim of the feelings that I refuse to hide
My brain is poisoned... My heart has turned gray
I wish I could turn back time just for one more day
All I am now is just this big black hole
I've fallen into it too, for I hate this role
I'm in so deep that I can't see the sun and I can't see the light
There's no way out, but I continue to fight
Until I realize that I'm just fighting back tears
An ocean of sorrow built throughout the years
On each and every tear is a reflection of you
Long ago reminders from when I could be happy too
The tears fill this chasm, the bottom of which I cannot see
From no direction can I escape, I will never be free
I look up, hoping to see you above
There is only darkness. No hope. No love.
Where I am now can only be purgatory
This is the end of my story...
I'm back where I started, but more damaged inside
A victim of the feelings that I refuse to hide
My brain is poisoned... My heart has turned gray
I wish I could turn back time just for one more day
All I am now is just this big black hole
I've fallen into it too, for I hate this role
I'm in so deep that I can't see the sun and I can't see the light
There's no way out, but I continue to fight
Until I realize that I'm just fighting back tears
An ocean of sorrow built throughout the years
On each and every tear is a reflection of you
Long ago reminders from when I could be happy too
The tears fill this chasm, the bottom of which I cannot see
From no direction can I escape, I will never be free
I look up, hoping to see you above
There is only darkness. No hope. No love.
Where I am now can only be purgatory
This is the end of my story...
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
The Daily Planet - coming soon
I mentioned I would devote a post to it...and this isn't it. But it will be here within the next week. I have two notebooks and a small notepad to go through, as well as trying to rack my brain and remember some of the specifics that I told people.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
The Fam.
Sometimes people get the wrong idea about me when I tell them I still live with my mom and stepdad.
I don't know what those people think, but I guess I'll set the record straight on this blog that no one reads. I'll also kind of summarize some stuff.
My mom was in the army. She didn't fight in any wars or anything, just basic training and being stationed at places or whatever. I don't really know the details, or I just forgot. That's where she met my dad. It's also where she met Bill, who is now my stepdad. My mom ended up marrying my dad and then I came along. Apparently she and Bill had feelings for each other but by that time my folks were together. Then my dad went totally batshit insane and cheated on my mom or whatever, which led to my mom and I moving from California (where I was born) to Pennsylvania when I was 3 and a half years old.
I still saw my dad once in a while. Usually I'd visit him during a weekend every few months and sometimes for an entire month during the summer. That was pretty much a waste of my time and a textbook example of bad parenting.
Anyway, Bill came to visit us here when I was very young but I don't remember it. Then, he kind of fell off the grid.
Fastforward to late 2007/early 2008. I forget the site but apparently it's a place where people who were in the military can post and try to get in touch with old buddies. My mom found Bill this way and arranged to meet him in...uh...the spring of 2008, I believe. They got engaged, then he moved here from Michigan in November 2008.
Of course this was a bit of a big deal, but made even bigger when we had to make some changes to the house to accommodate him. He makes violins and does gunsmithing, so my mom's living room on the first floor got turned into a "shop" area. The new living room is now on the second floor, which was mostly unused except for one room that has a weight set in it. Sadly, the room devoted to the shop ended up being a bit too small for his needs so he's been unable to make violins. There's bigger rooms on the second floor but all of the machinery is too heavy.
On April 1, 2009 my mom and Bill got married. The three of us drove down to Virginia on March 31st, picked up the marriage license, checked into a hotel/ate, slept, then went to a Justice of the Peace the next day. A cousin and aunt who I hadn't seen in a few years showed up as did some of my mom's co-workers. We hunted down a restaurant and had lunch/dinner, then drove back to Philly. Two day trip!
So yeah...kind of a weird situation to have some dude I don't know not only move into my house but marry my mom as well. I'm actually still getting used to it. We get along well, but I'm pretty easy-going in general.
Here's the thing, though. Unless I go downstairs to use the bathroom (since my own is out of commission for the time being) or get something to eat, I don't see my mom or stepdad. They both have problems with their legs and we have a lot of stairs in this building. No one cooks for me...I have to fend for myself for each and every meal. I'm able-bodied enough that I can help them out should the need arise.
So to the people that get the wrong idea about me, you can kiss my ass. No, this isn't the ideal situation. But I'm okay with that.
I don't know what those people think, but I guess I'll set the record straight on this blog that no one reads. I'll also kind of summarize some stuff.
My mom was in the army. She didn't fight in any wars or anything, just basic training and being stationed at places or whatever. I don't really know the details, or I just forgot. That's where she met my dad. It's also where she met Bill, who is now my stepdad. My mom ended up marrying my dad and then I came along. Apparently she and Bill had feelings for each other but by that time my folks were together. Then my dad went totally batshit insane and cheated on my mom or whatever, which led to my mom and I moving from California (where I was born) to Pennsylvania when I was 3 and a half years old.
I still saw my dad once in a while. Usually I'd visit him during a weekend every few months and sometimes for an entire month during the summer. That was pretty much a waste of my time and a textbook example of bad parenting.
Anyway, Bill came to visit us here when I was very young but I don't remember it. Then, he kind of fell off the grid.
Fastforward to late 2007/early 2008. I forget the site but apparently it's a place where people who were in the military can post and try to get in touch with old buddies. My mom found Bill this way and arranged to meet him in...uh...the spring of 2008, I believe. They got engaged, then he moved here from Michigan in November 2008.
Of course this was a bit of a big deal, but made even bigger when we had to make some changes to the house to accommodate him. He makes violins and does gunsmithing, so my mom's living room on the first floor got turned into a "shop" area. The new living room is now on the second floor, which was mostly unused except for one room that has a weight set in it. Sadly, the room devoted to the shop ended up being a bit too small for his needs so he's been unable to make violins. There's bigger rooms on the second floor but all of the machinery is too heavy.
On April 1, 2009 my mom and Bill got married. The three of us drove down to Virginia on March 31st, picked up the marriage license, checked into a hotel/ate, slept, then went to a Justice of the Peace the next day. A cousin and aunt who I hadn't seen in a few years showed up as did some of my mom's co-workers. We hunted down a restaurant and had lunch/dinner, then drove back to Philly. Two day trip!
So yeah...kind of a weird situation to have some dude I don't know not only move into my house but marry my mom as well. I'm actually still getting used to it. We get along well, but I'm pretty easy-going in general.
Here's the thing, though. Unless I go downstairs to use the bathroom (since my own is out of commission for the time being) or get something to eat, I don't see my mom or stepdad. They both have problems with their legs and we have a lot of stairs in this building. No one cooks for me...I have to fend for myself for each and every meal. I'm able-bodied enough that I can help them out should the need arise.
So to the people that get the wrong idea about me, you can kiss my ass. No, this isn't the ideal situation. But I'm okay with that.
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